One Lavender Ribbon by Heather Burch

One Lavender RibbonNarrated by Emily Sutton-Smith

One Lavender Ribbon is a love story that transcends time. In a sense, it’s two stories combined into one. Not only does Ms. Burch explore romantic love, but we also get several glimpses into what family is all about.

Adrienne Carter arrives in Florida after a difficult divorce. She’s pretty much given up on love, since her heart is shattered. Instead, she focuses all her attention on the Victorian beach house she purchased and has her heart set on renovating.

One day, while cleaning out the attic, Adrienne stumbles upon a bundle of letters that have been hidden away for over half a century. She begins to read them, and, as she becomes more and more engrossed in the story they tell, she realizes that love doesn’t necessarily have to be a thing of the past.

William Bryant wrote those letters to his girlfriend who used to live in the house Adrienne now occupies. He never knew what happened to them, but it’s been sixty years. Needless to say, he doesn’t give them a lot of thought. Instead, he spends his days fishing and gardening. His grandson Will shares his home, and the two men live comfortably together.

Will is incredibly protective of his grandfather. After all, he’s the only one around to care for him. He remembers how hard it was for his grandfather when the woman he refers to as “the love of his life” died, and he doesn’t want to see him hurt again. So, when Adrienne appears at their door, with letters in hand, Will is pretty sure this will end badly for all involved, but especially his grandfather.

According to Audible, narrator Emily Sutton Smith has seventeen titles to her credit. One Lavender Ribbon was my first experience listening to her, and, while I wasn’t necessarily blown away by her performance, she isn’t someone whose narration I can just dismiss out-of-hand. Her voice is pretty low for a woman, and it has a certain huskiness that some listeners may be drawn to, especially when it’s put to proper use. In my opinion, it made it hard for her to differentiate characters, since everyone spoke with at least a tinge of that husky quality.

Her best character portrayal was that of William, called Pops by family and friends. She gives him a slightly quavery speaking voice in present day, but, when Adrienne is reading the letters he wrote during the second world war, he sounds incredibly young, strong, and romantic. Ms. Sutton-Smith perfectly captures his poetic nature, which is not tarnished by the horrors of war.

Will was another well-depicted character. I was able to sense his love for his grandfather. He spoke very brusquely most of the time, which fit with the character Ms. Burch put on paper. His stubbornness as well as his belief that he is always right come through loud and clear.

Adrienne’s character was a little less fleshed out than I would have liked. Ms. Burch did this on paper, but the narration seemed a little flat. Adrienne is pretty complex. She left an abusive, unfaithful husband. She wants her independence back. She needs to find out who she is. Ms. Sutton-Smith is able to tell us these things, but she isn’t really able to show us. Her portrayal of our heroine lacked something that was necessary for her to really come alive.

As a couple, I had a hard time believing in Adrienne and Will. I understand what draws them together, but I was never convinced they were a good match. In spite of everything she’s gone through, Adrienne is given to quite a bit of impulsivity. This drives Will crazy, and they almost always end up fighting about it. For his part, Will is pretty certain that no one is as smart as he is. No one knows his grandfather the way he does. No one could possibly make better decisions than the ones he’s made. Adrienne doesn’t always agree with him, and, once again, they have a reason to fight. So many of their interactions revolved around fighting or making up. Even at the book’s end, I wasn’t sure why they stayed together.

You recall that I mentioned two love stories. The part of the novel that involves Pops and his second chance at true love is my favorite thing about One Lavender Ribbon. Sadly, I can’t comment too much about it for fear of the dreaded spoiler, but please trust me when I say that it’s heartbreakingly romantic.

Overall, One Lavender Ribbon is worth the listen, especially if you’re fond of World War II stories. Ms. Sutton-Smith’s performance doesn’t detract too much from the story, and the parts that were difficult for me to fully believe in don’t take away from those that are truly magical.

Shannon


Narration:  B-

Book Content:  B

Steam Factor:  Glad I had my earbuds in (fairly tame though)

Violence:  Domestic, as well as some wartime violence

Genre:  Contemporary Romance

Publisher:  Brilliance Audio

 

One Lavender Ribbon was provided to AudioGals by Brilliance Audio for review.